Cozy Up to a Super Easy Lazy Daisy Cake

The way-back machine comes right back around again with a fluffy and moist single layer cake topped with a super-fast broiled brown sugar and coconut topping that subs for traditional cake frosting. Just “foil up” your Lazy Daisy and away you go with an easy travel cake for potluck or office sharing. It also makes a nice morning coffee and cake treat. AND, pssst! It serves up a great little midnight snack (that’ll be our little secret).

All-American, all-era cake: Just like the cars that roll through the town of Snelling on Pancake Sundays with various decades of vintage wonder on display, the Lazy Daisy Cake is a time-honored American classic from the turn-of-the-Century AND the mid-Century AND the fab 70’s.

Building on a Simple Foundation: We found a very early version of this cake going by a different spelling, “Lazy Dazy” cake, in the 1911 American cookbook, “What We Cook on Cape Cod” edited by Amy L. Handy, published by The Village Improvement Society in Barnstable, Massachussetts. This early recipe leaves some parts to your imagination (and is without the broiled coconut topping that we’ve come to recognize for this cake), but the cake is pretty much the same simple single layer foundation cake.

What’s in a Name? The most common theory for the name of this cake is that it implies a simple cake, especially with the broiled frosting that is so quick and easy. However, the most prevalent recipes, including this one, call for a little bit of fancy dancing with boiled milk and separately whipped egg whites. A little bit of kitchen crafting attention, but not too much.

Some might recognize the name as it applies to the Lazy Daisy Stitch often used when the end of a flower petal or leaf is pinned down with a quick little tie-down stitch. Look closely to see the tie-die stitch on the leaf points in the apron close-up photo.

This cake was all the rage in the 1930’s, brought about likely by the invention of those new-fangled stoves hitting the market to make quick work of the broiled brown sugar, butter and coconut topping. See another version of a broiled frosting with our lemony one-bowl “WWII Labor Saving Cake”.

The recipe appears in the 1936 University of California “Extension Bulletin” with 1 teaspoon less baking powder than ours (and ours is quite light and fluffy, so I agree with the later revision).

The Lazy Daisy rose in popularity again in the 1950’s during a whirlwind spree of potluck and church event cakes. The 1954 “Improvement Era” journal, Volume 57, describes a quick and easy technique that is simple with results that are: “sure and delightful, (texture is superb) which makes it ideal for the busy homemaker who likes to hear compliments from family and friends.”

Here’s a fun little B&W video that will set the mood for retro meal planning…

They even began calling it a Lazy Daisy Cake when the broiled coconut frosting was spread over any variation of cake recipe. By 1972, Better Homes and Gardens started calling it a coffee cake. And they were right. It goes perfectly with a great cup of coffee (or a cappuccino)!

We’re heading from downtown L.A. to the little town of Snelling, California, for some R&R and little quality cake testing scenery. This town sits next to a lovely stretch of the Merced River that runs down from the Sierra Mountains and its just a skip up the road from my hometown of Merced, California (home of the new University of California at Merced). The vistas certainly change from my starting point at Pershing Square in downtown L.A to a calml river setting!

Once a month you’ll see this sign out on the highway just before you roll into town…

The town fundraises for various community projects, like, in the past, they raised money for a heart defibrillator (a chest zapper) to have on hand at the volunteer fire department. They’re also selling tickets to their annual quilt raffle (you can see a peek of the quilt in the background of this photo)…

The monthly pancake breakfast always attracts a nice crowd throughout the morning comprised of local folks, folks from Merced, travelers heading up to the fishing and water skiing lakes or to Yosemite, and car or motorcycle enthusiasts on a Sunday drive in their cool cars.

Volunteers man the pancake station, pour tomato juice, orange juice and milk, whip up some amazing sausage gravy and homemade biscuits and serve hearty helpings to the hungry crowds with a smile.

I often dip into this community cook book when I’m cooking at the river house. It’s called, “Country Cookbook: Snelling – Our Town”. I love it because it holds more for me than a nice collection of town recipes. It represents volumes of history for my family. It was published in about 1990 by Fundcraft Publishing, Inc. (specializing in fundraising cookbooks) and sponsored by the Novara Rebekah Lodge #61 (of which I am a proud member).

My grandparents farmed in Snelling in the 1860’s. My mother was raised on a ranch just outside of town (and was buried last year at the Snelling Cemetery, I love you, Mom). My daughter, Julie, and I transcribed the tombstones for the California Tombstone Transcription Society over one Christmas holiday. (You can see our transcription by clicking >>HERE.) And we still keep a treasured family home here on the Merced River where we come to chill with the kids, to fish and canoe and cook up a storm. So anything Snelling is near and dear to me.

This particular cake recipe was shared in the cookbook by the late May Pletcher. Born in 1919, Mrs. Pletcher was an incredibly vibrant and community-spirited Snelling resident. Although she passed away in 2009, we’ll always cherish her friendly nature and her wonderful stories of the old days in Snelling.

Bake on the center rack of the oven at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. The cake is done when the top is lightly golden brown, a toothpick inserted in the center top of the cake shows clean and the top springs back when lightly pressed.

You may prepare the cake topping just before the timer rings so it will be ready when the cake comes hot out of the oven.

Broiled Lazy Daisy Topping Directions:

In a cup or small bowl, use a fork to mix:
3 Tablespoons melted butter
2 Tablespoons evaporated milk (or, we used 2 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream but you could also just use 2 Tablespoons of water)
5 Tablespoons golden brown sugar, lightly packed (being sure there are no lumps)

Place the cake back into the oven, setting the oven to broil (usually a setting of 500 degrees) or under the broiler full blast for a minute or two — just until the coconut turns lightly golden brown.

Tip: Lest there be a distraction, I recommend leaving the oven or broiler door open and to stand watchful guard over the amazing miracle of the caramelization reaction. It usually only takes a minute or two to melt the sugar to golden hue and the coconut dances a little jig as it begins to brown.

Cut it into squares and get ready to break out the milk and coffee! The aroma of the bubbling brown sugar and coconut will attract a gathering.

Thank you for joining me on this vintage cake baking adventure. I do hope you’ve enjoyed it. And I do hope you’ll find a little time to bake this lovely little gem.

9 thoughts on “Cozy Up to a Super Easy Lazy Daisy Cake”

I just took Lazy Daisy out of the oven and she smells FANTASTIC! The cake is ligh-N-fluffy, moist and sweet. Very easy to make in no time. From gathering the ingredients, heating, mixing to into baking dish, it was about 10 min. I used a square glass pan that I sprayed with pam and lined the bottom with parchment paper to avoid sticking. I had unsweet coconut on hand. I drizzled about 3/4 of brown sugar mixed on top, then sprinkled coconut, then added the rest. Next time I’ll drizzle all the sugar and sprinkle the unsweet coconut because I don’t think it makes a difference. I would recommend letting the cake cool for 3-5 minutes before drizzling the sugar. I think it allowed for the sugar to not get too soaked in by the cake. But not a big deal. THIS IS AN AMAZING CAKE! Leslie, THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing it with us!! I will be making this again and trying more of your recipes!!

Thank you for letting us know about the timing for your Lazy Daisy Cake. I noticed your cake pan was square and these changes in sizes, and even ovens and flours, can make a difference — so you were smart to be vigilant towards the end of the cake baking. Your tips will help us all. Best, Leslie

Thanks so much for letting us know how your cake baking adventure went and that you enoyed the very vintage style Lazy Daisy Cake. And thanks for the tips on cooling and sugar sprinkling, etc. You just brought a little sweet history back to the world. Best, Leslie

I agree with Nancy! I remember eating this wonderful cake as a child. I forgot all about it until you wrote about it. This cake is worthy of resurrection. I also remember the pancake socials. I guess I do miss living in a smaller community.